Fernando Alonso targets first points amid Aston Martin’s technical upgrades | F1 Spanish GP. Aston Martin targets its first points of the F1 season with Fernando Alonso.

Aston Martin is experiencing a troubled weekend: the Silverstone team has lost Lance Stroll, who is suffering from severe pain in the hand and wrist he injured during a cycling training session a week before the 2023 pre-season tests in Bahrain. It’s remarkable how the situation escalated in Barcelona, to the point that the green team won’t be able to field a second AMR25 with reserve driver Felipe Drugovich, as the Brazilian did not even take part in a single practice session.

It’s a real shame because the British car has shown some signs of recovery, with Fernando Alonso chasing his first World Championship point in the ninth race of the season. The Spaniard was surprisingly fifth after the first Q3 run, but with only one set of new soft tyres available for the final qualifying segment, he slipped to tenth, unable to capitalise on the temperature drop that occurred when a small cloud briefly covered the Montmeló sky, speeding up the track.

Nevertheless, the AMR25 appears to be improving after the updates introduced at Imola. In Barcelona, Aston Martin brought a new front wing that complies with FIA technical inspections on the flexibility of components but also regains some performance by increasing airflow outside the front wheel thanks to the redesigned endplate.

The Silverstone staff has developed an interesting concept, which has also been pursued in parallel by Racing Bulls on the VCARB 02. A main element with a very long chord is complemented by the attachment of the other three flaps to the endplate via a horizontal metal support that is separated from the lateral vane, creating a sort of… letterbox.

In this way, an airflow path is opened to the outside of the wing, with the clear intention of cleaning up the turbulent wake of the front wheel. The FIA has become more attentive in checking wing flexing (although the feeling is that little has actually changed) and is allowing development areas that, at the beginning of the ground effect regulations, seemed off-limits but have now undergone significant refinement work in the wind tunnel.